Try Woodturning

You don't have to own anything to get started. Most people find woodturning by watching someone else do it, then taking a class, long before they think about buying a lathe.

Visit a local chapter

AAW has hundreds of local chapters worldwide. They meet regularly, and meetings usually include a demonstration — someone turning at a lathe while everyone watches and asks questions.

Chapters are independent organizations and each one sets its own practices. Contact the chapter near you to ask about visiting, demonstrations, or beginner instruction, and to find out when they meet.

Going once costs you an evening and tells you more than any amount of reading will.

Find a chapter near you

Take a class

Watching is the first step. Turning something yourself is the second, and a class is the usual way to get there.

Craft schools teach woodturning alongside other hand crafts, and many colleges and universities offer courses through their art departments. A beginner class supplies the lathe, the tools, and the safety equipment, so you can find out whether you enjoy this before spending anything on gear.

The same directory that finds chapters also searches craft schools. If you know of a school that isn't listed, email memberservices@woodturner.org.

Find a craft school

What a first session is like

An introductory workshop usually runs two to three hours, with a small group and enough instructors that everyone gets attention at the lathe.

You won't start with a bowl. AAW's own teaching curriculum begins with spindle turning — wood held between two points with the grain running along the lathe — because the cutting technique you learn there carries over to everything else. Bowls come later.

The pattern is watch, then do. An instructor demonstrates a cut, then you practise it: first making a square blank round, then cutting the two shapes almost everything else is built from, a raised bead and a hollowed cove.

Then you make something. Certain first projects are designed to be finished during a single guided session — a spinning top, a honey dipper, a pen, a wooden egg. You leave with it in your hand.

What it costs to start

Less than most people expect, and the biggest decision can wait a long while.

Attending a chapter meeting is generally free or close to it. A beginner class has a fee, but it includes the use of everything you need. Buying your own lathe is a later decision, not a first one, and good used machines turn up regularly when turners upgrade or downsize.

Don't assume you can borrow a lathe. Some chapters and schools have equipment you can use on site during a class or meeting. Taking one home is a different matter, and not something to count on.

If there's nothing near you

Chapters and classes aren't within reach of everyone, and a schedule doesn't always cooperate. That's a real limit and we won't pretend otherwise.

There is still useful ground to cover while you look — understanding the machine, learning the safety habits, and knowing what to ask a prospective instructor when you do find one. Getting Started covers that route.

Before you turn anything

Woodturning spins wood at speed and puts a sharp tool against it. It is safe when done properly and unforgiving when it isn't. AAW strongly recommends wearing a full face shield whenever the lathe is on.

Read the safety page before your first class, not after.

Next: Safety First →